


My Baby Is All Grown Up

by AKnightOfAGoodKing



Series: Clan of the Bat [4]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Super Sons (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-23
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2018-10-09 14:58:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10414752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AKnightOfAGoodKing/pseuds/AKnightOfAGoodKing
Summary: When a grown up Damian arrives in the past, Dick cries. A lot.[DO NOT REPOST/REUSE MY WORK(S) WITHOUT MY ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND PERMISSION.]





	1. Eldest Brother

The young man resembling Bruce had an amused smirk on his handsome, tanned face with cheekbones inherited from a queen and long, thick eyelashes that gave him an feminine beauty that the desert environment gifted its men. Along with his smile, he was wearing black suit without its jacket, showing off the vest that would have otherwise hidden it, and shining oxford shoes that made him look full of energy and professionalism. He was sitting on the couch in the Manor's living room, his long, elegant legs crossed daintily while his hands were clasped together over his lap.

From the seat across that couch, Dick was nearly to tears because he could not believe how _beautiful_ his baby brother would grow up to be. "Oh my god, Dami," he said, smiling a smile so wide his face could burst any moment, "I could die happy right now. My baby brother is so grown up now."

Damian chuckled, a low rumble that had no hint of mockery. It sounded awfully like Bruce's forced laughter, but there was a comforting presence of authenticity. "Please, Grayson," he said, voice practiced smoothly and well enunciated, "it's a little too early in the afternoon to die. Wait until after dinner. Penny's going to make creme bulee tonight."

Dick held back a sob, using his hands to cover his mouth. He mentally gave himself a pat on the back because his efforts got somewhere with Damian, who just casually made a joke. He never though there would be a day so soon that he would witness this side of Damian, the next ten years softening him, giving him crinkles of real, unabashed happiness around his dark blue eyes.

"Is something the matter, Grayson?" Damian asked, an eyebrow raised as he tilted his head to the side a bit. The action reminded Dick of a curious black cat, and he finally let out his thoughts.

"Dami, you've grown up to be a good man!" Dick nearly shouted as he launched himself at his youngest brother, arms encircling Damian's shoulder in a hug. The eldest buried his face against the youngest's neck, smelling the sun off Damian's skin. He had to start blinking away tears or else they would build up in his eyes. "My baby is all grown up."

Damian lightly clicked his teeth and made no effort to push his brother away, instead patting Dick's back with one hand. "Yes, yes, Mother," he said, "all children grow up. It's no surprise."

"My baby is all grown up, and he's charming and handsome and _pleasantly_  sarcastic. Are you sure you're Damian Wayne? My Dami? The Son of Batman?"

Damian cleared his throat, sounding a bit regretfully. "Well, I've grown up from that kind of sentiment over the years," he explained, his smirk replaced with a neutral expression, but a bit of pink showed on his cheeks anyway. "I learned it's what I do that make me who I am. I'm proud to be a Wayne, but I'm not forcing my way in order to take The Batman mantle anymore. I'm not ready for it as of yet, but I have plenty of time to grow into it."

That just made Dick cry even harder and hug even tighter. "I wish Bruce was back already," he said through happy tears. 

Damian smiled softly. "Me too," he said softly in such a way that made even the clouds seem rough. 

"So what happened?" Dick asked, pulling away a little. "You just showed up in the middle of patrol."

Damian nodded reassuringly. "I was in the middle of an investigation at the city's cemetery when some low level wizard attacked me," he explained, looking upset that someone got the best of him. "I suspected that someone was attempting necromancy, but the decomposition of the victimized bodies was twice of that of a regular corpse and the freshness showed that it was some novice who has no clue what he's gotten into." 

"You deal with magic?"

"Yes. Magic has always been in Gotham, but Father deals mostly with the physical crimes. Apparently, I have an affinity with magic, especially in Gotham since I have settled here for almost a decade. That's what Blood claims is the reason. He and I started a sort of detective agency."

"The World's Greatest Magic Detective."

"Don't let Constantine hear you say that. He hasn't really forgiven me the last time I had to  _borrow_ one of his items, but then again, he wouldn't have been so angry if he wasn't reluctant in the first place."

"What did you have to _borrow_?"

". . . The keys to the Realm of the World Eaters."

Dick laughed. "You're networking."

"It's a necessary aspect of the job, I suppose. However, if I get an invite to the Justice League Dark, I'll burn the Watchtower down to the ground first."

"That's a bit intense, Damian. Especially since Watchtower is in space."

"Yes, but I made a promise to a certain  _friend_ of mine. We won't join the League until we both take over our fathers' mantles and positions. But going back to the story, I was attack in the cemetery, but I managed to defend myself due to my natural ability to nullify low-level magic, and a fight commenced. However, I made the mistake of not suspecting a second magic user and was directly attacked from behind. I can only assume it was some sort of teleportation spell, but idiots can accidently change the most fundamental aspects. So instead of just sending me to another location, I was also sent to another time. Unfortunately, I haven't learned everything from Blood, so I'll have to wait for him  _to hurry up_."

"How do you know that he'll be able to reach you?"

"I trust him, Grayson. He's my friend."

Dick smiled, feeling extremely giddy inside when he heard his little brother admit such a thing easily. "Then I trust him too. How long do you think it'll take? A couple hours? A couple days?"

Damian shrugged, pulling out a cellphone from his back pocket. "Blood figured how to infuse magic into modern day technology, so he should be able to track me through this. If not, he'll probably have to go back to the old books that we couldn't copy into the computer. Hopefully, I chose a lucky enough of a partner who'll find the solution within the next few minutes. Alfred gets upset when I'm not in Gotham for more than a few hours."

"Aw, Alfred's still taking care of us."

There was a look on Damian's face that quickly disappeared. "Not a lot have changed, Grayson, but not a lot remained the same. And don't ask. I won't tell you. I know some will only hurt you, but they are all events we must face when the time comes."

Dick paused for a moment, taking in that piece of knowledge in, the way Damian said it and meant it. Then he nodded, understanding that if he tried to change anything, Damian may not grow up to be this beautiful, confident man who no longer fought demons but alongside them. That was the most Dick could ever ask for. 

The cell in Damian's hand rang, a light tone that went on for three beats in succession. Damian flicked the green arrow and, instead of putting it to his ear, he threw the device onto the ground. At the moment of contact with the flooring, a magic circle began to draw itself into the wood. It was drawn with a red fire into the same of a pentagram surrounded with simple motifs of roses, and from the touchscreen of the phone, a blue light formed as large as a full body mirror and split itself apart, a portal to another world. And from it, another young man was throw out, falling ungracefully onto the floor with a loud  _thud!_ and a habitual  _ouch!_  

The other man looked familiar too with black hair long enough to cover the frames of his thick rimmed glasses which seemed almost fogged up. He was dressed more casually than Damian with a part of ripped jeans and a tucked in plaid shirt, his features softer but also taller. He was handsome too, his body well defined as his chest seemed to press up right under shirt, but it was the smile that Dick recognized. It was the smile he knew since childhood, belonging to a hero both loved and famed.

"Hey, D," this young man greeted with that smile, patting himself of imaginary dirt. "Oh, hey, Dick! Sorry I haven't seen you in a month. I've just been really busy with the Planet. I swear I'll come visit when I finish my deadline."

Dick stared at the other man with his mouth open in shock, not believing his eyes to see Superman's son all grown up. Clark and Lois would kill to see how amazing their son had grown up to be. "Jon?" he finally said. He hadn't met Superboy enough time to be this level of comfortable yet, but this Jon was talking to him as if they were family.

"Jon, beloved," Damian said, shaking his head, "this is the past. Grayson has no idea what you're talking about. And why are you here? I thought you were in Japan for that large merging headline."

Jon let out a laugh, hands at his hips. "Oh, Jason contacted me about what happened, so I'm here to pick up my fiancé."

Damian made a motion to shush Jon, but it was too late. 

"Fiancé?!" Dick shouted, honing on that one word. His  _baby_ brother was getting married? What was Bruce thinking? Letting Damian get married? What was  _he_ thinking, letting his baby get married? Weren't they too young to be this serious? Who let his Dami grow up so fast? Who?  _Who?!_ "No, Damian, you can't do this to me! Oh my god! You're too young to get married!" 

Damian rolled his eyes in exasperation as Jon said, "It's like Christmas morning all over again, but without Bruce isn't here to glare me to death or Tim fainting. But I could totally go for Dad's pies."

"Grayson, calm down," Damian said, standing up much to Dick's distress, and walked up to Jon, the former only an inch or two shorter than the latter. "Really, Jon, you need be less clumsy. These shirts don't press themselves, you know."

As he said that, Damian rearranged the messy collar of Jon's shirt until they were in their proper places, and Jon laughed, wrapping an arm around his fiance's waist affectionately. "Yeah, yeah, babe," he said, pressing the both of them closer together, "I missed you too, you pretentious brat."

"I am not a-"

Dick stared jaw slack as Jon planted a big kiss on Damian, and then there were sounds, from both of them. The acrobat was ready to step right in between the two of them before things got too heavy and keep his baby brother away from Superboy forever, but someone else did it for him, a hand and then a face sticking out of the portal that was still there. 

"Superboy," Jason Blood said, a look of halfhearted disgust on his face. "I asked you to find Damian and bring him back, not make out with him in front of his older brother. My magic is not meant for you to fulfill your exhibitionist kinks to the fullest."

Jon blushed. "I  _don't_ have an exhibitionist kink!" he claimed.

Damian snorted. "Goodbye, Dick," his little brother said with a familiar smile as he pushed Jason face back into the portal rudely, and then shoved his fiancé in as well. "We'll meet again, in the future. I love you, brother."

And before Dick could take it all in, Damian took several steps back and then went for a running start, flipping himself in a front flip. He grabbed his phone from the floor just moments before he disappeared into the portal, the blue light gone in a blink of an eye without a stable medium to support its existence. 

There was silence, and two quiet pairs of footsteps came into the room, both finding Dick staring off into space with an empty expression. " _Grayson,"_ his little Damian said, commanding for his attention as Bruce looked at his oldest with a curious, worried expression, silently asking what was wrong. "Why are you staring off like that? If you're tired, you should get rest instead of sitting here."

Dick slowly looked to his brother, only eleven and still snarky. Then he started cry again, fat, comical tears rolling down his face as he unexpectedly pulled Damian in for a body crushing hug. "Dami!" he cried out. "My baby, don't ever grow up. Don't get married and leave me alone. Stay small and not interested in Supers forever."

Bruce coughed to hide his laugh, understanding that just as much. He had to deal with it with several children. Though he was confused about the Supers part.

"Grayson, what are you talking about?" Damian asked, frowning but not forcing away the hug. "You're babbling. Why are you crying?"

Dick sniffled a few times, his face settled in a pout. Then he couldn't hold it back and cried again. "You're going to leave me for another man!" he shouted, and Bruce decided it was the right time to leave the room and go to sleep. 

Obviously, patrol had taken too much out of all of them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> http://ko-fi.com/aknightofagoodking


	2. Fathers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now it's the fathers' turn. Inspired by Rebirth Superman #21

The young man -  _boy -_ was shirtless, and Superman was gaping at him because it was like looking at himself at the age of eighteen with the similar shade of blue eyes and cheek bones. There was some Lois in the boy too, the button nose and the smile. This was his son, from the future, eighteen year old Jon Kent sitting before him in a Watchtower  meeting room. 

"So how did you get here?" Batman asked, interrupting Superman's moment of pride. His son was nothing less than a  _miracle._ The Man of Steel was so close to glaring at the Dark Knight. 

Jon forced a laugh, feeling a bit too exposed without a shirt and his disguise. "Kryptonians are bad against magic," he stated the obvious, "and I was a bit, uh, distracted when I answered Jason's call. Some mage newbie was hitting Gotham's bank again, and my, uhm, partner was exhausted from staying up all week. 

"So I went ahead, bad idea, because the newbie was kind of smart about reading ahead of class but was dumb enough to not have practiced it. We fight for a bit, and then he gets a lucky shot and here I am, eight years in the past without a shirt on because  _somebody_ thought it was a good idea to take it after a shower. I'm not complaining or anything, but he likes to tease me a lot."

Superman smiled. Jon rambled. 

"And how are you going to get back to your time?" Batman continued. 

Jon shrugged. "Jason, probably, but I'll be a bit harder to find than last time. I didn't bring my phone with me."

"Jason Blood, right?" 

"Yeah. He's the reason Damian's always gets into trouble."

Superman's eyebrow perked up in curiosity. "You and Damian are getting along?" he asked, smiling. "Boot camp was a good idea then."

Jon cleared his throat, forcing a laugh. "Don't you know it, Dad."

  _Jonathan Jor-El Samael Kent-Lane!_

Out of nowhere, right on top of the meeting table, a rift in spacetime appeared, and an older man -  _boy_ \- walked out, arms crossed in near irritation. Superman's eyes widened to see that the older boy looked a lot like Bruce, desert kissed skin and regent, wearing short running shorts and a shirt a size or two too big for him. His fingertips weren't even poking out as he puffed with annoyance. 

"Babe," Jon greeted, sounding embarrassed. "You don't have to call me that every time. That's not even my legal name."

"As if that matters to me," said the older boy - Damian? "I think you should take pride in your heritage since we are going to combine two great bloodlines into an even greater one."

 "No pressure, right?"

Damian - that was definitely Damian - frowned, jumping off the table gracefully and planting himself on Jon's lap, to the younger boy's pleasure. The rift closed up behind him, its stability near non-existent. "Mother wants grandchildren, Jon," he said matter-of-factly. Then he acknowledged Batman and Superman for the first time as he pulled out a smartphone from his right sleeve. "Father. Father-in-law."

The two fathers were absolutely stunned. Batman stiffened as if he sudden connected the dots which Superman wasn't aware of. He heard the Dark Knight's blood pressure go up in that very moment, and the Man of Steel felt like he was going to faint. His baby was only eighteen, and already, his baby was engaged to his best friend's son. How did Lois take this? Superman distinctly remembered his wife calling Batman a psycho before. How did Bruce take this? The other side of the family? Did someone get hurt?"

Father-in-law," Batman repeated in disbelief, catching on already. "You're only twenty - one, Damian. There's no need to rush."

Damian clicked his tongue again, shrugging casually. He had certainly calmed down over the next decade. "Jon was my second choice, Father," Damian said, obviously joking, though the mirth in his eyes was sort of taunting. "Lena Luthor just so happened to reject me the first time."

Superman gasped. His best friend's son with a Luthor? Rao, no. 

"Hey," Jon protested, a bit upset about that. He wrapped his arms around Damian's waist protectively. "I'd marry you right now if it means she'll stay away forever."

Damian smirked. "Of course, beloved," he said, "but Mother-in-law said only after you've graduated. Neither of us wish to disappoint her now, do we?"

Suddenly, Damian's phone rang, to which Damian threw it onto the floor rather than pick it up. A magic circle drew itself on contact, and a roft appeared again, more stable with a familiar streak of white hair sticking out. 

"For bloody sakes," Jason said, face contorted with exhaustion at the sentimentality. "I don't know why I bother letting Jon work with us, Damian, if you won't stop it with the PDA. Really, Bruce, you got to teach your sons to keep their hands to themselves. You too, Clark. Your boy always tries to one up the boy and I'm left trying to ignore all the noise coming out of my potion closet. I don't need super hearing to know what's happening."

Jon flushed red in embarrassment while Damian flashed Jason a charming smile that lied for him, that he had done absolutely nothing wrong. Superman glanced over to Batman, thinking that at least his son wasn't shameless. Like father, like son he supposed. 

"Come on now," Jason then said, gesturing the two young men to hurry up. "The medium can only do so much before it heats up too much. And we still have an amateur on the loose."

"Coming!" Jon said, standing up with Damian habitually in his arms. "Bye, Dad! Bye, Bruce! Promise I'll come around soon!"

"Father," Damian merely said, nodding his head once. "Father-in-law."

"Wait, Jon!" Jason shouted, the younger man moving quicker than he expected. "Let me move out of the way first!"

Too late because Jon ended up crashing into the rift, a loud shout telling that he was knocking onto his back. There was a moment of silence before a hand reached back out of the rift and gave a wave to Superman and Batman before quickly picking up the phone. The rift disappeared. 

There was another moment of silence, neither daring to speak in fear of accepting what they had just learned. Then, Batman bought a hand to his comm, calling in for Robin.

"Robin," he said, voice devoid of emotion, "you're staying in Gotham for some time."

 _"What is it, Father? I'm busy right now,"_ their Damian said, voice over heard by Superman's hearing. _"Jon and I discovered that Lex Luthor has a daughter. I'll report to you on the matter when I've return."_

The other end disconnected, and Superman did not need to use x-ray vision to see the horrified expression on Batman's face.


	3. Sister

Cassandra was a little dumbfounded to find a younger man who looked like Bruce in the Manor kitchen late at night, drinking a premade protein shake like it was his. He made her heart beat a little harder, seeing a resemblance of a man who loved her for her, and relaxed when she recognized the subtlety in his posture that told her this was her baby brother. 

"Evening, Cain," he said, eyes flicking up from his reinforced smartphone in acknowledgement. 

"You're older," she said happily, taking a seat next to him. "A beauty."

Damian grinned. "Thank you. I'm glad to say you're quite one yourself. You won't believe how troublesome it gets for us later on. Suitors won't leave us alone. In order to get people off you, Father said that only someone who can beat you in hand-to-hand combat would have his blessing. Their numbers dwindled greatly the first few."

"And you?" Cassandra asked, smiling at the story as she spotted the ring on her baby brother's left hand. It was probably made out of nth metal, the Batclan holder of a sizable chunk and Damian very selective when it came to quality. 

Damian smiled too, bringing his hand up to her to give her a closer look.  _Jonathan Jor-El Samuel Kent-Lane, Beloved_ was engraved on it, accented with gold on the silvery metal. "Recently engaged to Jon, but we've been together for three years. We waited until he was legally an adult to make things official, however. Mother is quite proud of me for picking an extraordinary partner, and she has the cloning technology up to date for whenever we are ready for our own children. She said she would be proud to have any of them inherit her kingdom."

"That's very sweet of her. I'll love your kids too, Damian."

He raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Any child of mine will love you too, Cain."

Cassandra laughed softly, leaning over to place her head on her brother's shoulder. She rubbed her face against his gently, breathing in the flora aroma that surrounded him. "Gardenias," she said, knowing this particular smell. "Pretty."

"Do I smell like flowers?" Damian asked, frowning just a little. "I suppose I'm developing a resistance to time traveling magic now. A few more incident and I won't be able to come back here by magic again."

"You can use magic now?"

Damian shook his head and accepted Cassandra's hand when she reached out for him. It was smaller, paler than his, but held nothing but warmth reading from the many tiny scars. "Not magic," he explained, rubbing at her skin in adoration. "Blood says the entire family has a low level ability of nullification, but for me, with the Demon's blood in my veins, the nullification gets stronger and longer lasting with each exposure until one day, magic won't be able to affect me. It's both a gift and a curse. There were days that a simple healing spell would have been helped."

Cassandra hummed in sympathy. There were days that magic would've been a great help, but none of the family handled magic or superpowers, surviving and fighting with only their skills, intelligence, and each other. 

"Are you happy, Damian?" she asked. "I hope you are."

Damian paused for a moment, and then he chuckled. "Yes, I think I am, Cassandra," he told her, and she wrapped her arms around him, his shoulders broader and solid. 

Knowing that made the pain she had suffered and will suffer worth it, because he was happy. There was nothing more she ever wanted for Damian, for anyone in her life, to have. 

Cassandra felt the vibration before she heard the sound of Damian's phone go off for three beats. He picked it up, without moving her away, and threw it on the floor of the kitchen. A circle drew itself on impact and a blue light ripped a hole in the air. 

"There's my ride, as Todd would say," Damian said, getting up from his seat. Unexpectedly, he placed a kiss on his sister's hand. As he walked towards the blue light, stepping into it slowly as he faced her with a smile. "Bye-bye, Cain."

And then he disappeared, blue light and phone. Cassandra was left alone in the kitchen of the Manor, almost near tears because she was so hopeful for the future. 

She turned her head at the sound of almost silent footsteps coming from the hallway. "What are you doing, Cain?" her Damian asked, burrowing his eyebrows in curiosity. He was dressed in pajamas, arms crossed as he clicked his tongue once. He was worried, concerned about her, able to see the gloss in her eyes. 

"Just talking to myself," she told him, laughing. "Was seeing double."

Damian frowned, having the feeling that she was sort of lying. "I'll be back," he told her as he rushed off silently into the darkness of the hallway. It didn't take two minutes before he returned, a small pink color box in his hand, a white ribbon on top. 

Damian cleared his throat, presenting the box to her. He didn't look at her, his body language telling that he was feeling shy but trying. "I,” he started, his eyes finding interest on the floor, “I saw this when I was on patrol last night and thought it would look nice on you. I know you don't wear accessory.”

Cassandra smiled, tilting her head slightly because she wanted to hear him say it.

Damian frowned, fidgeting and nervous because it was rare that he did things like this, expressing his kindness so bluntly. “It's a gift. For _you_.”

Cassandra let out a laugh as she picked up the box. When she opened it, she saw the polished gleams of the the pearls and the diamond decorated silver balls. The pearls were a soft pink, like a baby, and the chain was silver, a durable barrel clasp keeping it together. She loved it.

Excited, she held out her left hand, palm up, and gave Damian a look. He got the message almost immediately, picking up the bracelet and putting it around her outreached wrist, twisting both ends tightly so that it wouldn't fall off easily.

“Love it,” Cassandra said, placing a few kisses on Damian’s cheek as she rubbed his hair adoringly. “Thank you, Damian.”

Her brother nodded, and they sat in the kitchen in the middle of the night a little longer, not really talking but taking their time with each other's presence. There was hope in the present as well. 


	4. Grandpa

"Good morning, Master Damian," Alfred said as he entered the kitchen, seeing that his youngest ward was usually older and transparent than usual. 

Damian, seeming like a ghost, hummed in acknowledgement, his head leaning against his hand against the counter as he looked out the window, dawn painting the sky prettily. "Morning, Pennyworth," he said, almost tiredly. He had probably been like this all night. 

"Lord, what happened to you?" Alfred asked, frowning with concern. There was a smell of fresh gardenias in the air. "Are you my Damian?"

Damian looked up. "Of course I am, Pennyworth," he said. "I'm from the future however, eight years. I got attacked by some transportation spell again by an up-and-coming sorcerer who panicked in my presence. Another mix up with the magic, but my nullification is starting to get used to time traveling. I'm stuck in a sort of limbo between time."

"Hmm, would you like a cup of hot cocoa then? As you wait it out?"

Damian smiled, shaking his head. "Thank you, but I can't. I'm physically incapable of doing anything here."

"Have you been here all night?"

Damian nodded his head, and Alfred started to make a cup of warm cocoa despite what was said. "I didn't want to disturb the Manor with my presence. It's been a year since I last went back in time."

Alfred smiled, placing a fresh cup in front of his youngest ward's form. "You must be a little cold, young sir," the butler said, gesturing to the cup. He spotted a silver ring around his youngest ward's left hand. "You're engaged? To whom?"

"Jon," the young man said, wrapping his hands around the cup. Everything was a little warmer. 

Inside, Alfred was giddy. A Kryptonian whose a close family friend, trustworthy and strong. Will most likely be able to protect Damian and understand him, like their fathers. The British man could not be anymore assured.

"Congratulations, Damian," Alfred then said, sighing in actual bliss.  "If you're twenty - two, wouldn't it make young Jon only nineteen? Quite quick, if I do say so myself."

"Understandable, but Jon's a little insecure about me. He says I've taken after Father too much and worries that someone would attempt to take me away. He really shouldn't worry, but it does make him endearing. Besides, Maya told me that she would be delighted to be my maid of honor."

"And the best man?"

"Grayson and our fathers."

"How many guests?"

"For privacy's sake, only close friends and family during the ceremony, but a brief public viewing during the reception."

"The date?"

"After Jon graduates from college and secures a position at the Daily Planet, of course. We're thinking of an autumn wedding, maybe October."

"Roses or lilies?"

"Neither. Camelias."

Alfred chuckled. "Unusual choice, but I like it."

Damian smiled in return. "I'm glad you think so," he replied, his voice fainter than before. His form was beginning to fade away. "Pennyworth, would you walk me down the aisle?" 

Alfred raised an eyebrow. "What about your father?"

Damian shrugged. "I don't think Father would mind."

Alfred chuckled again, crinkles around his soft eyes. "I'd be honored to, Master Damian. It's a promise."

And just like that, Damian smiled with joy. He disappeared like the brightest star in the morning light. 


	5. Older Brothers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (This went a little overboard.)

Damian, twenty five years old, was wearing a white suit. That was odd in the sense that he appeared out of thin air in an alleyway, spotted by Jason and Tim who were sharing this particular route to hang out and catch up. One could say they were bonding while simultaneously kicking thugs in the face and stopping crime. It was even more odd in the sense that Damian should be seventeen, not  _twenty-five_ , and with Bruce as Robin, not looking like some sort of groom. 

However, this was no place for a serious discussion, so Jason pointed a thumb towards the east, saying, "Keep up, Demon Brat."

The older Damian scowled at the nickname, but he kept up as they went to one of Jason's many safehouse around the Gotham. Into he way, Jason and Tim thought they had lost him a few times, only to be wrong when they spotted him ahead of them. When they arrived, Tim shut the window entrance tightly and took off his mask, surprise on his face.

"Damian?" he said, not sure if that was the pain in his ass for almost seven years. 

Damian clicked his tongue, sitting with his arms crossed. "Fortunately, this is for a rehearsal," he stated, frowning at the state of his suit. It was crinkled and stained with the kind of stains one would get standing in a dark, damp alleyway. "And yes, Drake, I'm him."

Jason took off his helmet, a hand combing back his hair. "What is going on here?" he asked, getting straight to the point. "Why do you look almost exactly like Bruce?"

"Father is the only one who thinks I look like Mother," Damian said, raising an eyebrow. "I  too fail to see what he sees-"

Damian disappeared, somewhere between a blink of an eye and a few milliseconds before. Then he reappeared again, his body fluctuating between being there and not being there. It was like watching quantum physics happening before their very eyes. 

"That had never happened before," Damian said, also aware of what happened. 

"What. Happened?" Jason said, a little concerned because even though Damian was annoying, this was his little brother either way. He would pissed if someone thought it was okay to touch his brother, any of them. Man, he was starting to sound like Dick.

"The rehearsal was attacked by some bank robbing sorcerer," Damian said, rolling his eyes. "There's been a lot of them these days. Maybe it's time for me to establish a magic association in Gotham. This is all Blood's fault, making me the face of Gotham's magical underbelly."

"Get back in topic, Damian," Tim urged, rolling his eyes. 

Damian clicked this tongue. "Today was the day of the wedding rehearsal, and everything was going as planned when some bank robbing sorcerer came crashing in, because who wouldn't want to attack a Wayne event, and started throwing spells everywhere. Since I'm most immune to magic, I faced him, but he was a coward and attacked my guests. He hit me when I shielded Mother-in-law and ended up here."

"Mother-in-law," Tim repeated, catching onto key words first, "wedding rehearsal? Are you getting married, Damian?" He asked this with a very incredulous tone because his younger brother was getting married? To who?

Jason's eyes widened. "Who would marry you, Baby Bat?" he asked, kind of offensively. 

Damian frowned in annoyance. "I'm not telling you," he said in petty spite. "You're just going to be the last one to find out."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Did I even get an invitation?" he asked half-heartedly. 

"Of course you were. You helped plan the honeymoon." 

Jason was surprised by that. The honeymoon, really? "And Tim?"

"He funded the entire engagement from the very beginning, even though we could've done it ourselves. Mother-in-law and Father-in-law are very grateful of Drake." 

Tim stood flabbergasted. Well, he didn't expect of himself, but with the way Damian seemed now, dressed handsomely in a suit and possibly not as annoying as he was now, it probably wasn't a bad investment. Who was he kidding? Investments in Damian were worth trying anyway, in family really. 

"It's nice to know you calmed down some then," Tim settled on saying. "You don't hate me as much anymore."

Damian huffed.

"It's not like I hated you entirely back then, Dra-"

"-but Titus!” 

"-eathstok-"

"-an oversized spaghetti flying mon-"

"-lay for good qualities and you don't-"

"-fu-"

"-everywhere, just everywhere and we had to use a toothbrush to clean it from the ceil-"

"-nyworth and Father, alon-"

"-bone!-"

"-Hal Jordan!-”

"-cibly removed from the premise be-"

"-oves me, and that's the bes-"

"-dent was what it was, an  _incident,_ nothing to wor-"

"-and every-"

"-I, an intellect-"

"Understand?"

No, not at all. "Y-yes?" Tim answered. "You keep disappearing on us, Damian."

Damian's eyebrows went up, as if he hadn't notice. He was currently stable. "The nullification process differently with each type of magic. This should be the last time time traveling magic can affect me, but we won't know until we try."

"And when does this," Tim said, gesturing to Damian with a roll of his hand, "stop being a thing?"

The Demon Brat - no, Jerk? no, no, he can't be anything else but Brat - shrugged, crossing his legs the way that Bruce does when the circumstance becomes a little too tedious. "If I knew, I still wouldn't tell you," he said, still pretty but in a playful tone. He raised an eyebrow. "Usually, people have questions about the future?"

"Are you handing answers out like candy?" Jason joked.

Damian merely gave him a look, a smirk at the corner of his lip. "That depends on whether I think you like candy or not."

The Brat had become delightfully annoying, a little shit as Stephanie would say. Jason, the big brother of two youngsters, was a bit proud. How did Bruce learn to handle this attitude? It had Jason's crass but with Alfred's elegance and Tim's passiveness, a beautiful product of nurture. 

"Who are you marrying?" Tim said, interrupting Jason's inner moment of pride. That made the entire room a little anxious in anticipation.

Damian frowned again. "You know him as Superboy," he relented, crossing his arms now. There was a brief shock on Tim's face. "No, not _your_ Superboy, Drake. You're not the only one with a Kryptonian counterpart. It's Jon Kent."

Kryptonian? Another brat? What? Why was Damian getting married in the first place?Who said it was okay for him to date before he was fifty? 

The actual revelation that Damian was actually marrying an actual person actual shocked both Tim and Jason into being overly protective and extremely skeptical because this was  _baby brother_ they were talking about. God, Dick's weird possessive love was starting to rub off on them. 

"Who said this was okay?" Jason blurted out.

Damian's face crumbled in confusion. "Do you have a problem with Jon, Todd? I'll have you kno-"

"No," Tim cut in. "Who said it was okay for you to get married? You're suppose to be Demon Brat  _forever!_ You can't just grow up and have a husband and kids, and your own house like that."

Damian was nearly speechless. "And why is that? Father gave me my own place near uni. I have lived outside the Manor before, even before I became Robin."

"Who let you out of the house?" Jason stretched out, almost scandalously. "

"Do you want me to move back into the Manor? Is that all?" Damian asked, ready to get this confusing conversation over with. 

"Yes. You and Superboy both, where there is _adult_ supervision."

"I am an a _dult,_ Todd. You're both being ridiculous!" Damian huffed, letting out a frustrated noise like a child. 

"Nope, no," Tim disagreed.

Damian let out a growl, looking ready to attack at any time. "I'm going to strangle you!" he shouted, getting up. "You can't make me do what I don't to!”

"Nope, nope," Jason and Tim said, shaking their heads  at the same time. 

"Sit back down, young man," Jason said, pushing Damian to sit. "Timmy, we need to double check that Lil' D here understand what's safe, what's not safe and what you can experiment with."

Tim nodded. "Right, right," he agreed. "We need Bruce to be here too. And Steph. Wait, when did you first have sex?!"

Both older brothers looked the youngest with heavy looks, and Damian's face flushed. "I hate you," he growled, and he disappeared, just like that, with the biggest scowl the world would ever see. 

Classic Demon Brat. 

(But seriously. Tim wanted to know, because he needed to clock block Damian. Out of spite, of course.)


	6. And the Rest Is History

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The inevitable dread, five years in the works.

"Father," Bruce heard his youngest call out to him at the dining table one Sunday. The boy barely turned eighteen, recently accepted into Gotham University where he had decided to live closer to, outside the Manor no less, during the school year, much to the patriarch's unspoken dismay. 

"Yes, Damian?" he asked, putting down his morning newspaper to look at his son. 

Damian seemed nervous, taking a moment to clear his throat before giving his father direct eye contact. His face was lightly blushed, but he proceeded anyway. 

"A recent development has occurred between Jon and I," he began, maintaining the look courageously. "Though we are three years apart and he is still not legal, we have decided to take a step forward and declare ourselves as boyfriends. However, you have nothing to fear as we won't do anything bordering illegality as lovers and any sexual aspects will be put on hold until he is also a legal adult."

Bruce did not reply, suddenly the event five years ago rushing back. He felt himself heat up, because his son was already eighteen years old and would be engaged within three years. This wasn't fair. Absolutely not. He was speechless. 

Damian cleared his throat again, courageous enough to go a little further. "I hope you approve, Father," he said timidly, face pink with a small smile on his face. 

God, Damian looked so much like Talia when he smiled like that, small but genuine, the pride and dignity of a regent passed down to him like a crown forever worn on his brow. Bruce didn't respond, couldn't, because his son was in love and he could not, would not, take this opportunity away from him, even though he was dreading the inevitable empty nest syndrome because all his kids were growing up and he felt so left behind. 

"Father?" Damian said, worried when he father didn't reply the first time. "Do you not  . . . approve? Father?"

Bruce immediately shook his head, clearing his throat as he did his best not to break down crying like Dick would. 

"No, it's okay," he forced himself to say, wanting to be supportive. Maybe, just as long as Jon kept his baby boy safe, he'll make it through the existential dread of time. "If you're happy, then I'm happy, Damian. Jon is . . . . a nice boy."

Really, Bruce had better compliments to pay Jon, but really, no one was good enough for his youngest, the one everyone in the family spoil in their own way, even Alfred. 

He cleared his throat again. "I trust you both take care of each other," he forced himself to continue. He wanted to rewind time and slow it down. His son was a man now. "And if you need any help, I'm here for you no matter what."

Damian lit up, expression and emotion more open as he aged, and he smiled again, Talia appearing from a memory beside him. There was a time when Bruce loved her the way Damian and Jon loved each other, but too many thing got in the way and in between them, they simply grew apart until their love dwindled into a caring love, still wholly affectionate but no longer as passionate as before. Still, she was a beautiful, brilliant woman, and Bruce was so thankful she gave him a son, despite why he came to be. 

"Thank you, Father," Damian said, grateful to have his father's approval. It wasn't as if he needed it, but still, it was something he wanted. Then he stood up, wiping his mouth with the napkin. "I'm going to tell Jon the news. He's a nervous as I was, but this will settle the tension. I'll see you next week, Father."

"Bye, son," Bruce said as his Damian walked out, waving to Alfred as they crossed paths at the threshold. 

Alfred, looking so ever pleased, grinned when Bruce dropped his face flat onto the table in a mixture of joy and despair. "Are you okay, Master Bruce?" the old man asked, already knowing the answer. 

"He's so young, but he's so grown up," Bruce whined. "I miss him already."

"Don't sulk, Bruce. It's unbecoming of you. I saw that Damian left with a pep in his step, so good job at being supportive. You've grown too."

Bruce was silent. 

"Are you okay?" Alfred asked again. "Are you crying, my boy?"

"No," Bruce said, his voice muffled against the table cloth. "I'm not crying. You're crying, Alfred." 

Alfred sighed, patting his oldest ward's head in sympathy. "There, there, Master Bruce," he said. "Don't think of this as losing son but gaining another. The family just got a little bigger, and I, for one, would have it no other way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://ko-fi.com/A12716L3


	7. Extra: Maid of Honor

She was eating a bowl of cereal. Yeah, sure, it was a very Dick thing to do, but you know what?  _Everyone_ can eat cereal, and you can take that from her cold, dead hands. 

Anyway, she was eating a bowl of cereal, reading multiple peer reviewed psychology journals  because she was starting in her dissertation and she had to stay on top of her game, always. Or else she'd get left behind. Ten minutes in, she was sipping the leftover milk and got up to put the bowl away, but then she saw something flicker, becoming a little less transparent as it paced back in forth with nervousness. 

Okay, when did this apartment get huants, and which magic user did she had to consult to fix this? 

"Brown," the flicker said, and Stephanie's eyes widened because that caught her by surprise. It wasn't like she was scared or anything, but anyone would be creeped out if a ghost knew your name. 

Then the image became a little clearer, and Stephanie could see through a man, tall and muscular. He was wearing a white suit, a red Camelia sticking out of his breast pocket. He was handsome, looking awfully familiar with long lashes and blue eyes. He looked like a prince, and this prince was nervous for some reason. 

"Damian?" she asked, half knowing this face. "What is going on?"

Damian grimaced, _fiddling_ with the end of his sleeves. "One last immunization against time traveling magic," he explained as if it was answer. She was a missing a few things, wasn't she? "My nullification is creating psuedo effects of the magic in order to seal up loose ends. Or that's what Blood told me."

He was pacing again. Stephanie put her bowl in the sink. She figured this wasn't the time to wash the dishes. 

"Okay," she said, taking all this calmly. "So why are you  so nervous? This isn't about the magic, is it?"

Damian stopped again, shaking his head. He let out a shaky breath. "I'm getting married today," he replied softly, glancing up almost listlessly. 

Stephanie let out a cooing laugh, feeling so proud and happy. "Dami! I'm so happy for you! Who's the lucky girl?"

"Jon," Damian answered, dismissing that he had a bride. 

She let out a gasp. "That's amazing! That's Superman's son right? That younger boy you've been running around the world fighting monsters and crime since you were thirteen? Right?"

He nodded, forcing a smile for a brief moment before looking anxious again. 

Stephanie stopped, now knowing why Damian was pacing the floor a new hole. She smiled softly, reaching out to take his hands in hers. It was an odd sensation as he continued to flicker in and out like a bad video, cold here and warm there, but she was able to feel the touch and so did he. 

"You'll be great, Damian," she told him without prompt. She locked eyes with him, certain in her words. "You're going to walk through those doors and marry Jon because he makes you happy. Doesn't he? And you know what? After all the things we've been through and will go through, we deserve to be happy. And no one can take that away from us, least of all you."

Damian's eyes glanced away. "What if he regrets this? I know I'm not most patient person in the world, and I-" 

She stopped him before he could have the chance to bring up a moot point. "He won't. You've been together since you were _teenagers_. That's plenty of time for him to figure himself out, and guess what, little D? He's going to marry  _you._ He still wants to be with  _you._ And that's beautiful. If that isn't love that lasts, then I'm the Joker." 

Damian let out a small laugh at that, his eyes a little shinier than Stephanie was used to, but it was a good look. It showed how much he had grown, and she was looking forward to knowing this man. 

"Thank you," he said, his image flickering harder now. His form was disappearing, but she could still see the smile on his face. "Brown, would you be my maid of honor?"

Her answer was immediate, right before he was gone for good. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was looking over the comments for this fic, and in chapter 4, anon Azhar wondered how Stephanie would react. That was when I realized that I. Forgot. _Stephanie fucking Brown._
> 
> I'm going to punch younger me for this sin.


End file.
